Splice trays are used for housing optic fibre joints, particularly in exchanges and typically comprise two spaced apart reels around which incoming optic fibres are coiled and a splice protector housing located intermediate the reels for locating and protecting an array of spliced joints formed between the ends of a multiplicity of optic fibres coiled on the reels. The reels serve to store spare lengths of the optic fibres and, if necessary, a short length of optic fibre can be unwound from a reel if it becomes necessary to form a new joint. The reels also ensure that kinks or undesirable bends of small radius of curvature do not occur in the optic fibres. Such bends or kinks are undesirable because they lead to light losses and thereby impair the efficiency of communication along the fibres.
A known splice tray manufactured by AT & T comprises two spaced-apart reel means defining respective generally annular or part-annular spaces for locating respective coiled optic fibres, and a splice protector housing for locating a spliced joint formed between such optic fibres.